Strange Ties
by nirvana18
Summary: Much joy is added to Robin's life when his "future daughter," Morgan, finds him. The only question is... who is her mother? Completed.
1. Chapter 1

Robin's heart felt as though it might burst watching his daughter sleeping beside him, nestled in the crook of his arm. Ever since her sudden appearance in his life two months ago, he'd bonded deeply with this child from the future. She adored him openly, even dressing exactly like him with a replica of his oversized cloak. Though he wouldn't admit it, it fed his ego that his child appreciated him so.

She even looked a great deal like him; though her facial features were obviously more feminine and child-like in her young age. Their body types were similar as well; he felt sorry that she was as lean and skinny as her father. But even now, she was beautiful and charismatic. There was only one small issue…

Robin frowned as he grabbed a lock of her shiny red hair between his fingers, careful not to wake her. It was messy and short, cut by Morgan herself in an attempt to keep it "out of the way." He dropped her hair sullenly, going deep into thoughts he'd had so many times already.

Who was her mother?

Robin wasn't romantically involved with anyone, gods, he didn't even really think of anyone that way. Yes, he did find most of the women in his life attractive and enjoyable to be around, but with an army to plan battles for that sort of thing wasn't exactly on the forefront of his mind.

But yet here was his daughter; and there was no doubt she was his. He mentally went through the list of all the red-haired women in camp as he had done at least a million times before in the past two weeks. Cherche, Anna, Cordelia, Miriel, and Sully, and Noire…

He immediately ruled out Noire with a wrinkle of his nose. He couldn't possibly become… involved with a future child, not with his own child here already. Though Noire was grown, he couldn't think of her as anything but a child- Tharja and Gaius's child, at that.

It didn't help that none of the remaining five possibilities were married, either. He agonized over these same thoughts over and over, trying to find a conclusion that would work. But no matter what angle he played it in his mind, he realized that relationships couldn't be carefully plotted and controlled like battles.

He tightened his arm around Morgan, looking down at her tiny face fearfully. His main concern was that if he didn't hurry and figure some course of action, the future that held Morgan would be missed and she would disappear from him…

He forced a smile on his face as his daughter began to wake, rubbing her brown eyes- identical to his own- sleepily. He'd already considered asking her if _she _knew anything, but Morgan had told him without his asking that she had no memories of her own mother. Not exactly reassuring.

"Morning, father," she yawned, sitting up and stretching. He chuckled, shaking his head. "Try afternoon. You fell asleep in the middle of strategy lessons."

Robin allowed his worries to fade into the back of his mind as Morgan immediately began apologizing, telling him what an awful daughter she was for falling asleep during his lesson, that she would make it up to him.

He silently promised her that he _would _find her a mother, someone who could love her as much as he did.

* * *

"Alright, Robin. Tell me what's on your mind."

"Huh?"

Robin looked up at his best friend in confusion. Chrom was a patient man by nature, but he seemed agitated at the moment. "I don't know what you mean-"

"You've been polishing your sword for over an hour now," Chrom pointed out, his blue eyes narrowing. "Just tell me what's keeping you so preoccupied."

Robin sighed. "Morgan is a beautiful girl, isn't she?"

Chrom shook his head at this, crossing his arms over his chest impatiently. "Don't try and change the subject-"

"No, this _is _the subject. Morgan is a very beautiful girl, right?"

Chrom shifted a bit uncomfortably, nodding his agreement with an uncertain bob of his head.

"A beautiful child like her must have an equally beautiful mother." Robin said bitterly, watching as understanding came across the prince's face.

"Morgan's a redhead," Chrom offered in a helpful tone, as if Robin didn't already know.

"Yes," the tactician agreed sarcastically. "I am aware."

"Are you- I mean, do you find any of the redheads in camp-"

"I don't know," Robin cut Chrom off quickly before he could ask that potentially embarrassing question. "I mean, with time I probably _could, _ah, become acquainted, but as of right now… no. I don't even spend much time with _any _women, let alone redheads specifically."

"Perhaps her mother isn't even within the camp," Chrom said slowly, his eyebrows furrowing in thought. "Maybe you became too drunk one day off at a tavern, and then-"

"Chrom, please," Robin begged, his fair face turning pink. "Be serious."

"Sorry," the prince grumbled, sighing as he shrugged his broad shoulders. "I'm sure anything I can think of, you've thought of twice. If it makes you feel any better, I haven't been having much luck… romantically, either."

Robin winced sympathetically for his friend's plight. "Then Olivia is still… shy?"

"Every time I so much as look at her for more than a moment, she flees like I'm a Risen," Chrom confessed darkly. "What am I doing wrong?"

Gods, Robin didn't know. He'd never courted a woman at all, let alone one as timid as Olivia.

"She'll become comfortable, Chrom. Just give her time," he advised gently, placing a hand on the man's shoulder for a moment before standing. "I should go and check with Frederick," he muttered, knowing the knight's hatred for tardiness. "His report is probably ready."

Chrom nodded and smiled devilishly. "Say hello to a pretty redhead along the way."

* * *

Robin _did _see a pretty redhead, much to his anxiety. Cherche was in the open wooded area that the Shepherds used for a training ground, her wyvern chewing on one of the dummies meant for target practice. She waved cheerfully as Robin approached, patting the huge beast lovingly.

"Hello, Robin. Do you want to pet Minervykins?"

"Ah, n-no thank you," he stuttered, avoiding Cherche's questioning eyes like the plague. "Have you seen Fredrick around?"

"He left a few minutes ago, looking for you," Cherche informed him sympathetically.

Robin cursed colorfully under his breath, wishing Minerva would suddenly develop a taste for tacticians. That would certainly save him a lot of pain that was coming from Frederick.

"Thank you, Cherche," he said awkwardly, smiling at her briefly before turning on his heel and speed-walking away from her. This was pathetic; her hair wasn't even the same shade of red as Morgan's. His daughter's hair had darker tones, not the pink-red tones in Cherche's hair.

But what if it _was _supposed to Cherche, and because he doubted that he'd miss his chance? He sighed as he considered this, walking aimlessly in search of Frederick. He finally located him by the gardens with Miriel. He forced himself to relax as he approached them.

"Frederick, I apologize. I was assisting Chrom with a task," he explained quickly as the brunette glared at him. The knight nodded slowly, his armor clanking as he crossed his arms.

"I'm sure if Lord Chrom required you, then the excuse for your tardiness is valid," he sighed, turning to Miriel with a "can you believe this?" expression.

He relaxed tenfold, scarcely believing he'd made off without having to do a hundred push-ups or run a mile. Miriel tilted her head, her brown eyes curious.

The mage studied Robin like a bug under a microscope, making him shift uncomfortably in his boots. "Tell me, Robin," she finally said, pushing her glasses higher up her sharp nose, "How is your daughter?"

He gulped; amazed that she could see through him that easily. "Morgan's fine, I'm sure…"

"I find it fascinating that you are the only one to reunite with your future offspring that has not already secured a spouse," she continued brutally, raising a thin eyebrow. "Don't you?"

"Uh… I suppose…"

"By means of deduction, there are only five possible females within the camp that could mother Morgan, considering her skin tone, hair color, and overall genetic makeup," Miriel said, "If my calculations are correct. And I do believe them to be accurate. There is a very slim chance that Morgan did not inherit her vibrant hair color from her potential mother, in which case I would need to recalculate."

"Oh, really? That's, uh-"

"These possibilities include Cordelia, Anna, Cherche, Sully… and myself," she concluded, glancing at Frederick briefly. "Though I'm sure you'll forgive me if I extract myself due to… prior commitments."

Robin looked at Frederick, who was steadily watering a cabbage plant. Was he imagining it, or was the knight blushing? "I understand, Miriel," the tactician finally replied dryly, "Thank you for your concern."

"Not at all," she answered brightly, opening the huge book she always carried with her and writing in it frantically, murmuring things like "fascinating" and "the timeline" under her breath.

Frederick cleared his throat and turned his attention from the plants, his cross expression aimed directly at Robin now. "Shall I begin my report? To start, you'll need to re-think your strategies for the time being. Lon'qu received an injury that should keep him off the battle field…"

Robin was forced to listen carefully and concentrate as Frederick went on and on, thankful for the distraction. He could worry about his daughter's future later.

* * *

Please keep in mind that I'll probably tweak the game's event a small bit for this story's purposes. Review your thoughts and opinion if you wanna, next chapter should be out very soon. :)


	2. Chapter 2

Robin sat at his desk in the flickering candlelight, concentrating on drawing out his next battle plan. If anyone were to look over his shoulder, they would've laughed at the poorly-drawn stick people that he used to represent his comrades. While his mind was brilliant at seeing the cause and effects of things, his art was severely lacking.

He looked up in agitation as he heard movement outside, no doubt someone wanting to enter but not wanting to just walk in. Being made of cloth, you couldn't exactly knock on the tents. "Come in," he called to the visitor in a monotone, putting his work aside ruefully. He appreciated his guest's respect for his privacy (Chrom had a bad habit of walking in unannounced) but he did wish they'd waited until tomorrow to visit...

He blinked in shock as Cordelia of all people walked in. She was a short, tiny woman with surprising strength. He'd underestimated her prowess when she'd first joined the Shepherds, placing her mostly in the back of the battles. Now that he realized his misjudgment, she was usually in the front lines.

"Cordelia," he said, trying to mask the surprise in his tone unsuccessfully, "Please sit."

She did as she was told, perching on the edge of his bed gracefully and staring fixedly at the floor. She seemed deeply troubled, her face white and her pink eyes watery. Smoothing down her hair, she finally looked up at him.

"A new recruit came into camp an hour ago," she said, her voice shaky. She paused and tried to collect herself. "Another child."

Robin sighed deeply. Every time another child showed up, there was usually a huge commotion as the parents tried to grasp the fact that their future offspring was staring them in the face. It also meant more work for him; he'd have to go meet this person and judge their strengths and weaknesses so he could assign them the safest role in battle.

"Where are they? I should probably go help the parents settle them in-"

"Robin."

Something in the way she said his name made him uneasy, a sinking feeling creeping up into his stomach. Why was she acting so somber? Was the child being unpleasant or something?

"Yes?" He asked, pushing his hair out of his eyes.

"The child is mine," Cordelia muttered, her face flushing in embarrassment. Robin winced, finally understanding her situation. He wasn't sure why she was telling him this, though. It wasn't as if they were close. Didn't girls usually talk to each other about this sort of personal thing?

Still, he completely understood her problem. It was nearly the same as his with Morgan; he knew Cordelia wasn't married or romantically tied to anyone. It was also no secret she was madly in love with Chrom, who loved Olivia with deep devotion. Hopefully she wouldn't want to talk about that...

"I understand," he said sympathetically, shaking his head. At least he wasn't the only one struggling with this problem.

"Her name is Severa," Cordelia offered, watching his face carefully. Robin couldn't help but smile; Severa was the name of his favorite author.

"An excellent name," he commented, leaning back in his chair tranquilly.

Cordelia sighed in frustration and shook her head. "You don't understand," she said, "Severa… she has _white _hair, Robin."

That made Henry the most likely candidate for the kid's father. Was she upset because she didn't want to end up with Henry? He became a bit angry for a moment. That was selfish of her; at least she knew who the father of her child was. And Henry wasn't a bad guy, he was sure she could learn to live with her future self's decisions.

"She wants to see you, but I asked to talk to you first," she continued, looking down at her hands as if they were fascinating. Robin became confused.

Why would the kid wanna see him…?

Suddenly it all clicked into place, and he wanted to laugh at his stupidity. Severa wasn't Henry's kid, she was _his._ That's why Cordelia was acting so awkward; they already had two children together. This was also the longest conversation they'd ever had.

He looked up at Cordelia in mortification, noticing for the first time how many features she shared with Morgan. Their lips and nose were the same, and then there was the obvious: Morgan's hair was the same exact shade of red as Cordelia's.

She looked back at him steadily, waiting patiently for him to collect himself with a pained look on her pretty face. He cleared his throat and sat up completely straight, pressing his fingertips together. "Well," he said, "I should meet Severa immediately. And you… you should talk to Morgan. I mean, only if you want to."

Cordelia seemed to look a little relieved, nodding at his words. "I'll send her in, and, uh… tell Morgan…" she trailed off, standing and exiting the tent. Robin groaned as she left, dropping his forehead onto his desk with a dull thud. Now that she was gone, he thought of a million different things he could have said.

At least he knew what the future held, now.

* * *

Cordelia walked around Robin's tent, wishing she'd had the courage to ask what he planned to do.

It seemed he was willing to take responsibility with the children, but what about her? If he planned on even having those children, she was the only option to him. She both wanted and dreaded to hear his thoughts on this. Before today, she hadn't even thought of him in a romantic light and she was sure he hadn't been fawning after her. And now they suddenly had two children together.

She hoped fervently that he would look after Severa with the same care he did Morgan. Though they'd spent less than an hour together, Cordelia already felt a strange connection to her daughter. The girl had spent the entire time yelling at her, but Cordelia just stared at her dreamily and imagined her as a tiny baby, wrapped up in her arms. She always knew she wanted a family, but she never imagined she'd have her options taken away from her. And that's what this felt like- she could either be with Robin or loose her two children.

Cordelia paused in her trek around the tent to grieve the fact that Severa didn't have blue hair.

She loved Chrom so; it caused her physical pain to finally accept that she had no future with the prince. She mentally berated herself, turning her thoughts forcibly to Robin. It wasn't as if he wasn't as handsome as Chrom, he was. And more importantly, he was kind. A perfect father to Morgan, and now hopefully as perfect to Severa.

He just wasn't Chrom.

She sighed and finally made her way to the other side of the huge tent, seeing Severa leaning against a tree. Severa took her face and body shape totally from her mother with only Robin's hair interfering, she'd already noticed. Morgan seemed to be more of a pleasant mixture of her mother and father.

"Well?" Severa snapped, her permanent frown deepening as Cordelia approached. "Will father see me now?"

"Yes," Cordelia said slowly, catching Severa's arm as her daughter attempted to pass by her. "Please, be kind to him," she begged. "He just now learned who you are, he must be shocked."

The teenager sniffed in superiority, rolling her pink eyes. "When have I ever _not _been kind, mother?" she asked in a sarcastic tone, jerking her arm out of Cordelia's grasp. "Don't worry about anything, you two will get comfortable enough in the future. Believe me, it's disgusting."

With that, Severa marched away, leaving Cordelia alone in the night. She considered her daughter's words hopefully. Did she really have a future with Robin?

* * *

An hour later, Cordelia was sitting in Morgan's tent while the teenage girl made her tea. Her daughter had greeted her with a hug and immediately began chattering happily. Cordelia couldn't help but wonder how her children got such opposite temperaments as Morgan handed her a cup.

"Did you hear that a new future child came tonight?" Morgan asked excitedly, sitting next to her on the floor. "Owain said she was really beautiful, with super long white hair, but no one knows who her mom and dad are yet."

She could barely focus on anything, staring at Morgan in a new light. They'd spent a fair amount of time together before tonight, and she'd never even considered that she could be her _mother. _Cordelia sipped her tea politely before setting the cup aside, reaching forward and pushing Morgan's messy hair out of her eyes. "Morgan, I have something very important to tell you."

"Okay?"

"The new arrival… she's your sister."

Morgan processed this for a moment before grinning broadly. "No way, that's _so _cool," she said eagerly. "Did she tell you that?"

"Uh… yes…"

Morgan frowned, tugging at her overlarge sleeve thoughtfully. "So if she's my sister, does she know who our mom is? I have no memories of a mother…"

Cordelia wanted to cry. Morgan had no memories of her, which made no sense considering all the other children kept their memories when they arrived in the future. They'd have to make new memories together.

"What's wrong, Cordelia?" Morgan asked urgently as a tear rolled down the Pegasus knight's face. She wrapped her skinny arms around her comfortingly, easing her head against her shoulder. "Did I say something? I'm sorry…"

"N-no," Cordelia gasped against her daughter's shoulder, trying to catch her breath. She felt so foolish; she'd come here to maturely tell Morgan the situation and now she was crying. "Morgan, _I'm_ your mother," she finally said, reaching forward and cupping her face.

The girl froze, looking at Cordelia in shock until her words registered. "Oh," she finally said, "Well, I guess that makes sense. We do kinda look alike."

Cordelia laughed, wiping her tear-streaked face. "Yeah, I guess we do."

"Does my sister look like me?"

"Not very much."

Morgan nodded at that a bit disappointedly. "Is father talking to her now?"

"Yes. I'm sure he'll want to talk to you about all this soon, too, to see if you're okay-"

"I'm fine," Morgan interrupted cheerfully, smiling at Cordelia. "I just… can I ask one thing?"

"Of course."

"Can I… may I call you mother?"

Cordelia wanted to cry all over again. "Please do."

* * *

The late next day, things were settling down at camp. Robin was thrilled to find that Morgan got along perfectly with Cordelia. She'd even already begun calling her mother, and was attempting to ease the awkwardness between her mother and father the best she could. Severa, on the other hand, was purposefully making remarks designed to make them both uncomfortable.

Everyone at camp was still curious as to how Robin and Cordelia would proceed from here. Maribelle had chewed him out thoroughly about "making an honest woman" of Cordelia as it "was only right." He wasn't sure that was how the whole thing worked, but he suffered through her rant in silence anyway. With Maribelle, it was best to just nod and smile.

Severa had told him that in the future, he and Cordelia were "absolutely repulsive" with their "kissing and stupid hand-holding," and advised them to "go ahead and get it over with."

He wasn't quite sure what to make of that. He didn't see himself as an affectionate person, exactly, but he supposed in the future it was possible that he and Cordelia could be that way.

He wondered what she would think of that. Not that he was going to ask her.

It was lunch time now, and the tactician approached Cordelia uneasily. They looked at each other for a millisecond before both looking away. Robin cleared his throat and stepped forward, raising his hands in a peace-making gesture. "Look, I know this is… incredibly awkward. But I was thinking that we could maybe spend some time together? Maybe that would make it less so."

Cordelia looked up at him and shrugged indifferently. "Why waste time getting to know each other? We both know where this is going to end up, don't we?"

He turned red, shaking his head violently. "That's n-not what I meant at all-"

"We might as well get married right here and now, that's what going to happen anyway."

"I mean, I don't want to make-"

"You're right, why even get married… again? Severa's already got the ring you'll give me. Nice job picking it out, by the way. But anyway, we're married in the future, that's good enough for me. Honestly, I've always loved the idea of being a mother. You won't keep me waiting, will you darling?"

Robin's blushed turned several shades darker as she grabbed his rough hand, her skin soft and cool in comparison. She busted into laughter, squeezing his fingers lightly. "I'm _kidding, _Robin. Gods, you should see your face. Now let's go spend some time together."

With that, she led him by the hand towards the kitchen. Robin felt very dumb indeed.


	3. Chapter 3

I wanted to say thanks for the positive feedback. :D Also, I apologize in advance for any typos/errors. I corrected a few in previous chapters for future readers. Anyway, enjoy this chapter! The next should be out soon.

* * *

The whole "spending time together" thing didn't go over exactly as Robin had hoped, but not due to any lack of chemistry between Cordelia and himself. It was just hard to have a conversation over lunch with ten other people blatantly staring and whispering about you.

After a few minutes of forced small talk, Robin discovered that Cordelia's favorite color was yellow and she liked to swim. Looking across the room, he saw Lissa and Chrom sitting at their usual table. Lissa turned away when Robin caught her eye, whispering something into her brother's ear. Chrom frowned and then shrugged, unimpressed with whatever she had to say.

"They're talking about us, aren't they?" Cordelia muttered to him, keeping her eyes safely on the tabletop. Robin nodded and rubbed the back of his neck. This had been his idea; he needed to remedy this disaster.

"Why don't we go into town?" he suggested, "I'll buy our- uh, _the _kids something nice. You know. Bonding time and all that." He let the implication weigh heavily in his words, gauging her reaction carefully. She smiled, standing from the table immediately.

"Severa will like that. Let's go."

* * *

Robin was quickly learning that Cordelia was a woman of action. Whenever a task was presented to her, she immediately set about it with diligence. No more than twenty minutes later they were all in town. Cordelia had roused Severa out of bed (no easy task) with promises of presents and pulled Morgan from studying her books. The woman was a force to be reckoned with.

Now, amid the hectic chaos of the busy town, she moved gracefully from booth to booth looking at the various goods. He had no idea how she had so much energy. Every merchant she approached she gave a charming smile, something that the men especially seemed to enjoy.

And who could blame them? She wasn't in her normal armor, instead wearing a practical white shirt with snug-fitting trousers. He could tell that every inch of her tiny form was pure muscle, but not overly so. He couldn't ask for a prettier mother to his children even if he'd thought to ask for that specifically.

And what was more than that, she was kind. He smiled as she stood and talked to a single merchant for a good ten minutes, laughing and even giving the elderly woman a hug before moving on to the next booth. Cordelia turned and caught him looking at her, raising an eyebrow at him curiously. "Just watching you," he admitted honestly.

She looked anxiously over his shoulder at Severa, who had several dresses thrown over both of her slender arms. "I suggest you watch Severa before she buys the whole town…"

As if on cue, Severa ran up to Robin and took his arm, nestling her head against his shoulder.

"Daddy, I found the most beautiful dresses. And I know you said I could get two things, but wait until you see how great they look on me! You'll _want _to get all four!"

* * *

It turned out that Robin actually _did _want to get the other four, but they made a compromise and he gladly bought three for her. He had to admit, she had a good fashion sense. She must've gotten that from Cordelia. Heaven knows how many times Lissa had nagged him- and recently, Morgan- about never wearing anything but "that ragged, disgusting, humongous old cloak."

Unlike Morgan, Severa borrowed nothing from his face. Cordelia was in all of her features, but her hair was entirely like his. It hung past her waist in ringlets that she kept pulled into neat pigtails, just as pale-white as his own. The two sisters also had extremely different personalities, but they got along well enough. Severa was kind to her sister in her own way.

"Oh _gawds _no," Severa gasped as Morgan approached her father timidly with two books tucked under her arm that she wanted. "We're getting you out of that ugly coat and into something presentable right now, Morgan."

Morgan handed the books to Robin and allowed herself to be pulled along to the clothing area, where Severa pulled her out of sight into a dressing room. Robin bought the books, smiling when he read their titles- they were both books about battle strategies.

He found Cordelia standing over a table of jewelry. She smiled as he approached, pointing at one ring in particular. "Isn't the opal pretty? Martha says that it's not rare, but still quite popular." The woman behind the table nodded at Robin as Cordelia spoke, confirming her words.

Robin picked up the ring and examined it. She was right, the opal was pretty. The band holding the gem was slim and golden, very elegant. He handed Martha the proper amount of gold listed, turning to Cordelia and holding up the ring. "It's yours, then."

"Robin, I can't-"

"Yes, you can," he insisted, grabbing her left hand and sliding the ring onto her ring finger gently. She flushed and looked at him anxiously, silently asking him what he meant by that.

"A perfect fit," Martha said, leaning across the table for a better view. "And a beautiful couple."

They walked away in silence after thanking Martha, Cordelia lifting her hand and looking at the ring before turning to Robin with the same anxious expression. "Don't worry, that wasn't a proposal or anything," he assured her lightly. "Think of it more as a... promise."

"A promise of what?"

He considered this. "A promise that when- ah, if- I do propose, I'll get you an even nicer ring."

She laughed.

* * *

They met up with Morgan and Severa shortly after that, and Robin was surprised to see that Severa had completely transformed her in the short time they'd been apart. Her normally messy hair was pulled into two short braids, and it seemed she was wearing a small amount of makeup.

Severa had even gotten her into a dress, which Robin paid for happily. His daughter looked absolutely beautiful in the yellow dress, and it made him even happier when Cordelia showered Morgan with compliments on her beauty and Severa on her excellent taste in clothing.

The four walked back into camp together happily, ignoring or not noticing the looks their comrades where giving them. Morgan and Severa opted to go back to Morgan's tent together to talk about "girl stuff." Robin was ridiculously pleased to see them getting along so well.

Cordelia smiled after them as the sisters walked away. "They had a lovely time, Robin. Thank you so much."

"What about you?" he questioned. "Did you have a nice day?"

In answer, Cordelia stood on her tip toes and lightly kissed his cheek.

"I had a perfect day," she replied, giving him a sweet smile. He couldn't help but smile back, raising his hand to his face and pressing his palm to where her lips had been.

It wasn't exactly a marriage proposal, but it was a start.


	4. Chapter 4

Not everything went as smoothly as it had that perfect day in town. Cordelia hadn't expected it to be easy from then on.

Severa was the main cause of their difficulties. The girl went through mood changes when they were together: one moment they'd be training with each other peacefully, the next Severa would be yelling at her about something that she'd done in the future, something that she usually didn't see herself ever doing.

Morgan also made things hard in her own happy way. She'd constantly say things that hinted at a romance with Robin, such as "Father must like you a _lot_; he bought you such a beautiful ring." She wasn't blind to their awkwardness, but Cordelia figured that Morgan probably thought if she ignored how tense they were they'd eventually relax around each other.

Her fellow Shepherds had at least calmed down, the "scandal" becoming uninteresting as there was no news of a wedding or anything of that sort. But what had they expected? She and Robin had barely known each other before this whole thing.

Still, her life was happier than it'd been before. She'd mostly spent her days training and in battle beforehand, or else somehow working for the better of the Shepherds before dropping into her bed every night, completely exhausted. Now she spent a great deal of her free time with Morgan or Severa, and even Robin at times. Their schedules didn't allow them much time together, but Robin had taken to visiting her tent at dusk when he had the chance.

At first, they'd stuck to talking about battles and such. It put Robin at ease to discuss something he knew well, and Cordelia found it interesting. But more recently they'd talk about more personal things, like Robin's amnesia. They'd even laugh over things Morgan and Severa said, slowly becoming more comfortable with their strange situation.

It thrilled her to see that he doted on Severa just as he did Morgan, not seeming to favor one child above the other. He worked on her swordsmanship with Severa for hours on end patiently, even when she became frustrated and yelled at him. Morgan didn't seem to mind that her father's attention was now divided between them. The redhead would usually just find her mother when she wanted attention and her father was busy.

Cordelia found herself thinking less and less of Chrom, someone she'd used to be reminded of constantly. More often than not, she now thought of her children or even Robin.

She was beginning to like him more and more as they spent time together. The way his face would light up when he talked about planning out the battles, how he was so kind to Severa even when she was angry. She loved these things about him, and these little details came to fill her mind at random points in her day where beforehand she'd thought about Chrom.

It still hurt her to think about the prince, but not as much anymore. Especially now, since he'd announced his engagement to Olivia. She'd actually felt happy for him, something she hadn't thought was possible. She'd accepted and resigned herself to be happy with what she could have.

* * *

Robin wanted to groan as Chrom began talking excitedly about Olivia _again _for probably the tenth time that day. To say he was elated as putting it lightly, so Robin was trying to be patient.

But after the fifth time Chrom brought up just how beautiful Olivia was, he'd just zoned out whenever he heard the dancer's name. Sure, she was pretty. But he personally enjoyed a confident and strong woman with a bit more muscle to her name than Olivia would ever have.

Cordelia fit that description perfectly, he realized.

He nodded at whatever Chrom was saying halfheartedly, quickly becoming impatient. This wouldn't be so difficult to listen to if he wasn't so jealous of his best friend. Chrom was completely oblivious to the fact that Cordelia had loved him long before he'd ever even met Olivia. Robin didn't like to admit it, but he was bitter about this fact. There was no way he could ever compare to Chrom.

He suffered in silence, trying to prevent his jealousy from putting a strain on their relationship.

"I still can't believe she said yes," Chrom said once more. "You were right before, she just needed time."

"I'm glad for you, friend," Robin mumbled, knowing Chrom wouldn't notice how tiredly he congratulated him. The prince was blind to anything but his own happiness at the moment.

"I was wondering if you'd be the best man at the wedding?"

This stopped Robin short. He figured that the position would go to Frederick, whom Chrom had known for a lot longer. "I don't know, don't you have to have some sort of nobleman as your best man?" he questioned uncertainly.

Chrom snorted. "Robin, if I'm _marrying _a commoner, do you really think I need to have a noble for a best man?"

The tactician chuckled, seeing the logic in this point. "I guess not. In that case, I'd be honored."

Chrom looked out of the tent for a moment. "Cordelia's probably waiting for you," he pointed out. Robin had told him most everything that happened. Chrom was well aware of their evening visits. "You shouldn't keep your wife waiting."

Unlike Robin himself, Chrom felt with perfect certainty that Cordelia would be his wife. But then again, Chrom also didn't know that Cordelia loved him.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Robin muttered, pulling his cloak tighter around him as he walked into the cold night.

* * *

Cordelia brushed her hair in front of the large mirror in her room. It hung past her waist and had a tendency to become untidy at the ends, something that drove her insane. And… if she was being honest with herself, she wanted to look nice for Robin's visit.

Putting down the hairbrush hurriedly when she heard him approaching, she opened the tent's flap and quickly stepped aside for him to enter. She'd learned that Robin loathed the cold. These long winter months were miserable for him. He rubbed his hands against his arms as he sat on her neatly made bed, his teeth nearly chattering. She sat next to him and laughed at his nose, which was red from cold.

"W-what's funny?" he shivered, slowly becoming more relaxed in the warmth of her tent.

"You're cute when you're cold," she answered, watching in amusement as he became flustered. She grabbed one of his hands and rubbed it between her own, slowly warming it with the friction.

"Thanks," he murmured, whether for her compliment for for her warmth, she couldn't tell. "I can only stay for a few minutes tonight," he admitted.

Cordelia felt a touch of disappointment. His visits were one of the best parts of her day.

"I've got to help Frederick set up more tents. We're getting more recruits than we can handle," he continued. "But… I wanted to ask you something before..."

He trailed off, looking at her anxiously, biting his lower lip. His hand was now normal temperature, still pressed between her own. She laced their fingers together boldly. He squeezed her hand lightly, clearing his throat before going on.

"Would you like to go on a picnic with me tomorrow?" he asked timidly, "Youdon'thavetoifyou'rebusy," he added in a rush. "It's not even a picnic, really, since it'd be in my tent. I just thought it'd be more comfortable inside, where it's warm," he finished apologetically.

"I'd love to," Cordelia assured him. He exhaled a breath she hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Wonderful. Well, uh, I should probably go now," he said regretfully, squeezing her hand again before standing up from her bed.

Now came what was usually the most awkward part of her day. She wasn't sure when they'd started doing this, but whenever he left for the night they always hugged each other. It was always a short embrace; she could literally feel how tense he was at the contact.

But tonight she stood and pulled him tightly against her, resisting the urge to laugh at his surprised face. He rested his chin atop her head, stroking one hand through her hair gently.

She broke the hug gracefully, smiling at him as he stepped backwards towards the exit.

"See you tomorrow," he said cheerfully before taking a deep breath, pulling up his hood and stepping outside. Cordelia looked down at the ring on her left hand, remembering his promise.

_"A promise that when- ah, if- I do propose, I'll get you an even nicer ring."_

She would certainly hold him to that.

* * *

The final chapter will probably be out in a few days. Thank you for reading thus far, I hope you liked this chapter.


	5. Chapter 5

Morgan sat between her sister's legs with slight reluctance, squirming as Severa began pulling a hairbrush through her short hair mercilessly. The white-haired girl's favorite pastime seemed to be grooming and dressing her younger sister like some oversized doll. She'd been primped and painted and made up enough times in the last few weeks to last for an entire lifetime.

But Morgan suffered in silence for a number of reasons. For one, she could admit she did look nicer once Severa was finally satisfied with her work. She'd never cared much about how she looked, but lately she found it mattered a bit more to her- namely because she had a huge crush on Owain. Not that that he ever noticed her despite Severa's makeovers. But still, it couldn't hurt to look pretty.

And for another thing, it made Severa happy to treat Morgan like her personal plaything. They got along surprisingly well in spite of Severa's difficult personality; Morgan was just sweet enough to bring out Severa' softer, protective-older-sister side.

"Sev?" Morgan sighed as her sister set the hairbrush aside and began braiding her hair with flawless skill, her long fingers pulling the bright red strands together like magic.

"What?"

"What will happen if father and mother… don't get married?"

Severa paused in her work for the briefest second, so fast that Morgan almost didn't notice.

"Stupid. Of course they'll get married," she muttered, continuing to twist the braids into Morgan's hair with a bit more force.

"But how can you be sure?"

Morgan chewed on the inside of her cheek as she waited for a reply. She looked at her sister with anxious brown eyes as Severa finally abandoned her braiding and sat in front of her, her expression serious.

"I'm sure because we're both here. The fact that we exist tells me that mother and father will get married and 'baby us' will be here soon enough."

Severa wrinkled her nose in apparent disgust at the thought, pretending to gag. Morgan giggled, starting to feel a little better despite her worries. She knew it wasn't easy on her parents to get to know each other given their circumstances, and the nagging thought that they wouldn't be compatible with the added stresses of already having children together kept her up at night. Not to mention the chance she could just pop right out of existence...

"'Sides," Severa continued, lifting her tanned hand in front of Morgan's face, "I've got proof that they get married. Mom's ring. So don't worry about it. They'll be all over each other sooner or later… and it'll be totally disgusting."

Morgan nodded and allowed her sister's words to convince her. Severa was confident in the future she'd come from; she'd just have to trust that her parent's love would come to them sooner or later.

* * *

Robin smoothed out the blanket on the floor of his tent for the twelfth time (he'd been counting) and checked once again that he'd gotten everything that he had on his list for the "picnic."

The idea had been Lissa's; the princess has insisted that any girl wanted a 'romantic picnic with her beloved.' Robin had pointed out it was freezing cold outside, a certain damper to any potentially romantic situation. Lissa had punched him in the arm and told him to 'figure it out.'

So he'd set up a huge blanket in his tent, which he kept toasty warm all throughout the year.

It was quite an impressive layout, he could say without bias. He knew Cordelia had a sweet tooth so he made sure to include a wide selection of dessert. Now she just had to show up…

Cordelia rushed into the tent then, her face pink from exertion. Her long red hair was pulled into tight pigtails, which made her look even more like Severa than usual. She paused for breath as she closed the tent's flap. Waving away Robin's concerned start toward her, she managed to pant out "Frederick… made me… made… run laps… for… f-for… missing practice this morning…"

Robin nodded in absolute pity, leading the poor woman to the blanket on the floor. He'd been made to run laps more often then he'd like to recall- it was never a pleasant experience.

She finally seemed to catch her breath, smiling at him as her breathing became normal again. He was glad, he'd been afraid for a moment that she might pop a lung or something.

"Did you do all this yourself? It looks great."

He shrugged as if he hadn't spent the better part of his day frantically gathering the things he'd carefully written down, making sure everything about this was perfect. "I guess so."

She popped a chocolate-covered strawberry into her mouth, crossing her long legs Indian-style beneath her. "So, I figured I should tell you this. I don't really know what you'll think…"

Robin stiffened. Those weren't exactly words anyone wanted to hear. "Uh, okay?"

She laughed and patted his knee reassuringly. "Don't look so worried. It's just something about Morgan," she said, frowning when his face became more worried rather than less. "She… may have a small crush on Owain. I think it's cute."

Robin balled his fists, instantly angry at the thought of _anybody _being near his daughter in that way, even if it was just a harmless crush on Morgan's behalf.

"I'll make sure to keep him far away from her," he grumbled, crossing his arms across his chest tightly. Cordelia sighed and shook her head.

"That'll only make her like him more," she said wisely. "I don't think we have anything to worry about, really. Owain is a good boy."

Robin could agree with this. Owain mostly spent his time with Yarne and on training. He was a little… odd, but he liked Lissa's son well enough. Still not well enough to trust him with Morgan, though.

"I still don't like it," he pouted.

She shrugged. "We don't really get to pick who she wants to like, do we? _I_ didn't even get to choose to like _you_. But we must really like each other if we have two kids," she said teasingly, poking him in the side.

He laughed, seeing the logic a tiny bit. "I guess you're right."

Cordelia tilted her head, a strange expression coming across her face.

"You're a good father, Robin," she said randomly. "Morgan and Severa are lucky to have you."

He furrowed his brow, wondering what brought about this sudden compliment.

"Thank you," he murmured, "I try to spend as much time with them as possible."

Cordelia nodded, tucking a stray hair from a pigtail behind her ear. "I'm lucky to have you, too."

He was at a loss for a reply to this. What did one even say to something like that? 'Yeah, you are pretty lucky to have me?'

"You've been so kind to me considering our situation, and more patient with Severa than anyone else is. I just wanted you to know that… that I think this could all work out," she continued, keeping her pink eyes fixed on her hands that she had resting in her lap.

Again, he could think of nothing intelligent to say. A dark blush crept into his cheeks and he was glad she wasn't looking at him to see it. What did she mean by 'I think this could all work out?'

The logical part of his brain that Robin used for planning battles kicked in and he calculated that there was two possible things that Cordelia likely meant by this. Option one was that she meant that they could be happy, that he'd continue to be patient with Severa and she'd get along with Morgan and they'd all live separate lives and be separately happy with each other.

Option two was that she meant they could work out, as in him and her. Together. Married, probably. Already with two kids and enough awkwardness for the rest of their lives.

He didn't dare hope that she meant _they_ could work out, but the evidence pointed toward option two. Why would she look so bashful if she only meant they could all be happy?

So instead of saying anything in response and potentially making a fool of himself, he simply reached forward and cupped her chin in his hand. He lifted her face to look at him gently, meeting her timid eyes. He leaned forward until his breath was blowing gently against her face. She stiffened, probably thinking he'd kiss her. He didn't, but what he did do was press his lips against her earlobe, which felt nearly as intimate as a kiss.

"I think this could work too, Cordelia," he whispered.

* * *

Later that night, Robin was cursing the bitter cold as he stomped through town with the mission of picking up some staff for Lissa. The shop she needed it from was a three mile journey away, and of course no one else was willing to go get it.

He paused as he approached the same jewelry table from before, Martha smiling at him welcomingly. He mumbled a greeting to the woman as he looked over the various necklaces and rings in a somewhat bored fashion, more out of politeness than actual interest in buying anything.

A particular ring caught his eye. It was very small with a golden band, shiny blue gems engraved into the precious metal with perfect skill. Something about the ring was familiar…

His shiver had nothing to do with the bitter cold. He'd seen that very ring every day since his eldest daughter had arrived three weeks ago, wrapped snugly around her slender finger. Severa never took off the only memento she had from the future: Cordelia's wedding ring.

He turned to Martha, breathless, holding up the ring.

"How much for this?"

He was going to marry her, this ring proved it. This could work.

* * *

Bit of an open-ended final chapter, but you can safely assume what happens next. :) I really hope you guys liked this story. I want to do another soon from Awakening, so suggestions for couples you'd like to see or anything like that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!


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